Tawasul

About us

Tawasul (Arabic for "linkage") is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that was founded in 2003 by a group of Palestinian civil society activists committed to achieving peace, democracy, and the two- state solution.

The aim of Tawasul is to promote a culture of peace, enhance democratic values and act as a catalyst for non-violent communication between all the components of the Palestinian society.
Tawasul focuses on encouraging women and youth to participate in decision-making processes and strives to inspire and bring hope to civil society activists so they can contribute to the promotion and advancement of democratic movements in Palestine. Tawasul envisions an independent, peaceful, democratic, secular and prosperous Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, in which the civic, political, social and economic rights and freedoms of all its citizens are respected on equal base.

Objectives:
• To contribute to creating a space for marginalized members of the Palestinian community (women, children, and youth) where they can participate actively in decision-making processes.
• To contribute to strengthening civic peace, national unity, national identity, citizenship, peaceful dialogue, and political tolerance among the different political and social segments of the Palestinian community.
• To enhance the capacity of the Palestinians, especially women and youth, in conflict resolution and their role in achieving decent life.
• To develop an awareness among Palestinians of their civic, political, social, economic, and environmental rights
• To promote concepts of good governance, rule of law and transparency in public and private decision-making processes among Palestinians.

Activities/Projects:
• Creating Change Agents: Tawasul, together with the School for Peace and USAID, worked on empowering key stakeholders in both Palestine and Israel to become change agents. The three-year project involved 40 women journalists, 40 environmentalists, and 40 up-and-coming politicians to provide them with the tools necessary to achieve institutional change in their professional sectors.
• Youth Environmental Awareness: The goal of the project was to train youth groups in the area of environmental awareness.
• Youth Access to Media: A media training project for youth in the West Bank
• New Leadership for New Jerusalem: The objective of this project was to influence Israeli public opinion and decision makers to change their stance and accept a shared Jerusalem, whereby East Jerusalem with its 1967 borders would become the capital for the future State of Palestine.
• Children and Youth: The International Children’s Parliament - Tawasul trained a group of 30 children in leadership, national identity, and the English language.
• Democracy Building: Parliamentary Assistants
• The Way to Happiness: Tawasul started a public awareness campaign together with the American Organization "The Way to Happiness". A booklet on democratic values entitled "The Way to Happiness" was printed.
• Conflict Resolution: Police Officer Training; Student Council Training
• Achieving Peace: Tawasul organized a series of training courses in conflict resolution, leadership, communication skills, lobbying and advocacy in six universities around the West Bank.
• Town Hall Meetings
• Ramadan Concert
• Community Service: Tawasul involved youth in community service activities.

Fathi Darwish is the General Director of Tawasul.

For other net participants we can offer an expert guidance through trained staff, give an expert opinion, procure expert information and establish new contacts in the field of our work.